{{Out of date|As Arch has moved to systemd, the vast majority of information on customising the live image is out of date.}}

[[Category:Live Arch systems]]

[[Category:Live Arch systems]]

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[[Category:Getting and installing Arch]]

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[[ar:Archiso]]

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'''Archiso''' is a small set of bash scripts that is capable of building fully functional Arch Linux based live CD and USB images. It is a very generic tool, so it could potentially be used to generate anything from rescue systems, install disks, to special interest live CD/DVD/USB systems, and who knows what else. Simply put, if it involves Arch on a shiny coaster, it can do it.

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[[zh-hans:Archiso]]

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The heart and soul of Archiso is mkarchiso. All of its options are documented in its usage output, so its direct usage won't be covered here. Instead, this wiki article will act as a guide for rolling your own live mediums in no time!

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{{Related articles start}}

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{{Related|Remastering the Install ISO}}

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{{Related|Archiso as pxe server}}

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{{Related|Archboot}}

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{{Related articles end}}

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'''Archiso''' is a small set of bash scripts capable of building fully functional Arch Linux live CD/DVD/USB images. It is the same tool used to generate the official images, but since it is a very generic tool, it can be used to generate anything from rescue systems, install disks, to special interest live CD/DVD/USB systems, and who knows what else. Simply put, if it involves Arch on a shiny coaster, it can do it. The heart and soul of Archiso is ''mkarchiso''. All of its options are documented in its usage output, so its direct usage will not be covered here. Instead, this wiki article will act as a guide for rolling your own live media in no time!

== Setup ==

== Setup ==

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Before we begin, we need to grab the archiso scripts which carry out the beef of the work for

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{{Note|

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* To use Archiso you must be running on a x86_64 platform. [https://projects.archlinux.org/archiso.git/tree/docs/README.build#n67]

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* It is recommended to act as root in all the following steps. If not, it is very likely to have problems with false permissions later.}}

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Before you begin, [[install]] the {{Pkg|archiso}} or {{AUR|archiso-git}} package.

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# pacman -S archiso

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Archiso comes with two "profiles": ''releng'' and ''baseline''.

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{{Note|1=Alternatively, the GIT version can be built and installed [https://aur.archlinux.org/packages.php?ID=25996 from the AUR].}}

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* If you wish to create a fully customized live version of Arch Linux, pre-installed with all your favorite programs and configurations, use ''releng''.

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* If you just want to create the most basic live medium, with no pre-installed packages and a minimalistic configuration, use ''baseline''.

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Create a directory to work within, this is where all the modifications to the live image will take place: ~/archlive should do fine.

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Now, copy the profile of your choice to a directory (''archlive'' in the example below) where you can make adjustments and build it. Execute the following, replacing {{ic|'''profile'''}} with either {{ic|releng}} or {{ic|baseline}}.

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$ mkdir ~/archlive

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The archiso scripts that were installed to the host system earlier now need to be copied over into the newly created directory you will be working within.

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# cp -r /usr/share/archiso/configs/'''profile'''/* ''archlive''

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Archiso comes with two "profiles": releng, and baseline.

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If you wish to create a fully customised live version of Arch Linux, pre-installed with all your favourite programs and configurations, use "releng".

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If you just want to create the most basic live media, with no pre-installed packages and minimalistic configurations, then use "baseline".

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So, depending on your needs, execute the following, replacing 'PROFILE' with either '''releng''' or '''baseline'''.

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* If you are using the {{ic|releng}} profile to make a fully customized image, then you can proceed onto [[#Configure the live medium]].

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# cp -r /usr/share/archiso/configs/'''PROFILE'''/ ~USER/archlive

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* If you are using the {{ic|baseline}} profile to create a bare image, then you will not be needing to do any customization and can proceed onto [[#Build the ISO]].

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If you are using the 'releng' profile to make a fully customised image, then you can proceed onto [[Archiso#Configure_our_live_medium]].

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== Configure the live medium ==

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If you are using the 'baseline' profile to create a bare bones, installation image, then you won't be needing to do any customisations and can proceed onto [[Archiso#Build_the_ISO]]

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This section details configuring the image you will be creating, allowing you to define the packages and configurations you want your live image to contain.

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Inside the {{ic|''archlive''}} directory created in [[#Setup]] there are a number of files and directories; we are only concerned with a few of these, mainly:

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* {{ic|packages.*}} - this is where you list, line by line, the packages you want to have installed, and

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* the {{ic|airootfs}} directory - this directory acts as an overlay and it is where you make all the customizations.

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Generally, every administrative task that you would normally do after a fresh install except for package installation can be scripted into {{ic|''archlive''/airootfs/root/customize_airootfs.sh}}. It has to be written from the perspective of the new environment, so {{ic|/}} in the script means the root of the live-iso which is to be created.

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== Setup (manual way) ==

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=== Installing packages ===

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{{Note|If you have already completed Setup the 'automatic' way, using the steps above, then you do not need to read this section.}}

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Setup a base filesystem

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[[Edit]] the lists of packages in {{ic|packages.i686}}, {{ic|packages.x86_64}}, or {{ic|packages.both}} to indicate which packages are to be installed on the live medium. The suffix here indicates which architecture the packages are available.

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# mkarchiso init

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Install other packages (optional)

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{{Note|If you want to use a [[window manager]] in the Live CD then you must add the necessary and correct [[video drivers]], or the WM may freeze on loading.}}

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# mkarchiso -p "pkg1 pkg2 pkg3 ... pkgN" install

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At this point, customize anything that you want in root-image, then exit when done.

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==== Custom local repository ====

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# mkarchiso -r "bash" run

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{{Merge|Pacman tips#Custom local repository|Move the general information (e.g. repo tree) into the main article.}}

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{{Out of date|References to i686 need to be removed due to its phasing out.}}

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Setup initramfs image.

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You can also [[custom local repository|create a custom local repository]] for the purpose of preparing custom packages or packages from [[AUR]]/[[ABS]]. When doing so with packages for both architectures, you should follow a certain directory order to not run into problems.

If this is not the case you will be running into error messages similar to this:

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# mkdir -p work/iso/arch/boot/syslinux

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Create a '''work/iso/arch/boot/syslinux/syslinux.cfg''' file.

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error: failed to prepare transaction (package architecture is not valid)

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:: package foo-i686 does not have a valid architecture

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{{bc|1=

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==== Preventing installation of packages belonging to base group ====

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DEFAULT menu.c32

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PROMPT 0

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MENU TITLE Arch Linux

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TIMEOUT 300

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LABEL arch

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By default, {{ic|/usr/bin/mkarchiso}}, a script which is used by {{ic|~/archlive/build.sh}}, calls one of the {{Pkg|arch-install-scripts}} named {{ic|pacstrap}} without the {{ic|-i}} flag, which causes [[Pacman]] to not wait for user input during the installation process.

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MENU LABEL Arch Linux

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LINUX /arch/boot/i686/vmlinuz

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INITRD /arch/boot/i686/archiso.img

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APPEND archisolabel=MY_ARCH

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ONTIMEOUT arch

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When blacklisting base group packages by adding them to the {{ic|IgnorePkg}} line in {{ic|~/archlive/pacman.conf}}, [[Pacman]] asks if they still should be installed, which means they will when user input is bypassed. To get rid of these packages there are several options:

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}}

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Copy menu.c32 needed by previous config.

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* '''Dirty''': Add the {{ic|-i}} flag to each line calling {{ic|pacstrap}} in {{ic|/usr/bin/mkarchiso}}.

* '''Clean''': Create a copy of {{ic|/usr/bin/mkarchiso}} in which you add the flag and adapt {{ic|~/archlive/build.sh}} so that it calls the modified version of the mkarchiso script.

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# mkdir work/iso/isolinux

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* '''Advanced''': Create a function for {{ic|~/archlive/build.sh}} which explicitly removes the packages after the base installation. This would leave you the comfort of not having to type enter so much during the installation process.

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# cp work/root-image/usr/lib/syslinux/isolinux.bin work/iso/isolinux/

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# cp work/root-image/usr/lib/syslinux/isohdpfx.bin work/iso/isolinux/

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Create a '''work/iso/isolinux/isolinux.cfg'''

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==== Installing packages from multilib ====

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{{bc|

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DEFAULT loadconfig

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LABEL loadconfig

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To install packages from the [[multilib]] repository you have to create two pacman configuration files: one for x86_64 and one for i686. Copy {{ic|pacman.conf}} to {{ic|pacmanx86_64.conf}} and {{ic|pacmani686.conf}}. Uncomment the following lines to enable ''multilib'' in {{ic|pacmanx86_64.conf}}:

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CONFIG /arch/boot/syslinux/syslinux.cfg

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APPEND /arch/boot/syslinux/

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{{hc|pacmanx86_64.conf|2=

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[multilib]

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SigLevel = PackageRequired

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Include = /etc/pacman.d/mirrorlist

}}

}}

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Create an '''work/iso/arch/aitab''' file.

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Then edit {{ic|build.sh}} with an editor. Replace the following lines:

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# <img> <mnt> <arch> <sfs_comp> <fs_type> <fs_size>

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root-image / i686 xz ext4 50%

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Build all filesystem images specified in aitab (.fs .fs.sfs .sfs)

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{{hc|build.sh|

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# mkarchiso prepare

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run_once make_pacman_conf

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Generate an ISO 9660 with "El Torito" boot image (optional)

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# Do all stuff for each airootfs

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# mkarchiso -L "MY_ARCH" iso "my-arch.iso"

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for arch in i686 x86_64; do

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run_once make_basefs

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run_once make_packages

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done

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== Configure our live medium ==

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run_once make_packages_efi

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This section details configuring the image you will be creating, allowing you to define the packages and configurations you want your live image to contain.

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for arch in i686 x86_64; do

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run_once make_setup_mkinitcpio

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run_once make_customize_airootfs

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done

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}}

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Change into the directory we created earlier (~/archlive/releng/ if you have been following this guide), you will see a number of files and directories; we are only concerned with a few of these, mainly:

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with:

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packages.* - this is where you list, line by line, the packages you want to have installed, and

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the root-image directory - this directory acts as an overlay and it is where you make all the customisations.

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=== Installing packages ===

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{{hc|build.sh|

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cp -v releng/pacmanx86_64.conf releng/pacman.conf

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run_once make_pacman_conf

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You will want to create a list of packages you want installed on your live CD system. A file full of package names, one-per-line, is the format for this. This is '''''great''''' for special interest live CDs, just specify packages you want and bake the image.

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# Do all stuff for each airootfs

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Edit the packages.i686, or packages.x86_64 file depending on whether you are create a 32bit, or 64bit image, respectively.

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for arch in x86_64; do

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run_once make_basefs

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{{Tip|You can also create a '''[[custom local repository]]''' for the purpose of preparing custom packages or packages from [[AUR]]/[[ABS]]. Just add your local repository at the first position (for top priority) of your build machine's '''pacman.conf''' and you are good to go!}}

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run_once make_packages

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run_once make_packages_efi

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run_once make_setup_mkinitcpio

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run_once make_customize_airootfs

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done

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=== Adding a user ===

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echo make_pacman_conf i686

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cp -v releng/pacmani686.conf releng/pacman.conf

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cp -v releng/pacmani686.conf ${work_dir}/pacman.conf

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There are two methods to creating a user: either by adding the relevant useradd command to rc.local, or by copying over (and modifying) /etc/shadow, /etc/passwd, and /etc/group.

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The latter method shall be discussed here.

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Copy your /etc/shadow, /etc/passwd, and /etc/group from your '''host''' system to the /etc/ directory '''where you now working''' (which should be ~/archlive/releng/root-image/etc)

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for arch in i686; do

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e.g.

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run_once make_basefs

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# cp /etc/{shadow,passwd,group} ~/archlive/releng/root-image/etc/

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run_once make_packages

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run_once make_packages_efi

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run_once make_setup_mkinitcpio

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run_once make_customize_airootfs

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done

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}}

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{{Warning|The shadow file will contain your encrypted password. I recommend before you copy the shadow file over, you change the password of your host user to that which you want your live user to have, copy the shadow file over, and then change back your password.}}

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In this way packages for x86_64 and i686 will be installed with their own pacman configuration file.

=== Adding files to image ===

=== Adding files to image ===

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{{Note|You must be root to do this, do not change the ownership of any of the files you copy over, '''everything''' within the root-image directory must be root owned. Proper ownerships will be sorted out shortly.}}

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{{Note|You must be root to do this, do not change the ownership of any of the files you copy over, '''everything''' within the airootfs directory must be root owned. Proper ownerships will be sorted out shortly.}}

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The root-image directory acts as an overlay, think of it as root directory '/' on your current system, so any files you place within this directory will be copied over on boot-up.

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The airootfs directory acts as an overlay, think of it as root directory '/' on your current system, so any files you place within this directory will be copied over on boot-up.

So if you have a set of iptables scripts on your current system you want to be used on you live image, copy them over as such:

So if you have a set of iptables scripts on your current system you want to be used on you live image, copy them over as such:

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# cp -r /etc/iptables ~/archlive/releng/root-image/etc

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# cp -r /etc/iptables ~/archlive/airootfs/etc

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Placing files in the users home directory is a little different. Do not place them within {{ic|airootfs/home}}, but instead create a skel directory within {{ic|airootfs/}} and place them there. We will then add the relevant commands to the {{ic|customize_airootfs.sh}} which we are going to use to copy them over on boot and sort out the permissions.

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Placing files in the users home directory is a little different. Do not place them within root-image/home, but instead create a skel directory within root-image/ and place them there. We will then add the relevant commands to the rc.local we are going to create to copy them over on boot and sort out the permissions.

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First, create the skel directory:

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# mkdir ~/archlive/airootfs/etc/skel

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First, create the skel directory; making sure you are within ~/archlive/releng/root-image/etc directory (if this is where you are working from):

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Now copy the 'home' files to the skel directory, e.g for {{ic|.bashrc}}:

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# cd ~/archlive/releng/root-image/etc && mkdir skel

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# cp ~/.bashrc ~/archlive/airootfs/etc/skel/

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Now copy the 'home' files to the skel directory, again doing everything as root!

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When {{ic|~/archlive/airootfs/root/customize_airootfs.sh}} is executed and a new user is created, the files from the skel directory will automatically be copied over to the new home folder, permissions set right.

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e.g for .bashrc.

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# cp ~/.bashrc ~/archlive/releng/root-image/etc/skel/

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Inside the root-image/etc/ directory, create the rc.local file, and '''make sure''' you make it executable:

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Similarly, some care is required for special configuration files that reside somewhere down the hierarchy. As an example the {{ic|/etc/X11/xinit/xinitrc}} configuration file resides on a path that might be overwritten by installing a package. To place the configuration file one should put the custom {{ic|xinitrc}} in {{ic|~/archlive/airootfs/etc/skel/}} and then modify {{ic|customize_airootfs.sh}} to move it appropriately.

Due to the modular nature of isolinux, you are able to use lots of addons since all *.c32 files are copied and available to you. Take a look at the [http://syslinux.zytor.com/wiki/index.php/SYSLINUX official syslinux site] and the [https://projects.archlinux.org/archiso.git/tree/configs/syslinux-iso/boot-files archiso git repo]. Using said addons, it is possible to make visually attractive and complex menus. See [http://syslinux.zytor.com/wiki/index.php/Comboot/menu.c32 here].

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The default file should work fine, so you should not need to touch it.

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=== Login manager ===

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The aitab file holds information about the filesystems images that must be created by mkarchiso and mounted at initramfs stage from the archiso hook.

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Starting X at boot is done by enabling your login manager's [[systemd]] service. If you know which .service file needs a softlink: Great. If not, you can easily find out in case you are using the same program on the system you build your iso on. Just use:

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It consists of some fields which define the behaviour of images.

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# <img> <mnt> <arch> <sfs_comp> <fs_type> <fs_size>

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$ ls -l /etc/systemd/system/display-manager.service

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; <img>: Image name without extension (.fs .fs.sfs .sfs).

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Now create the same softlink in {{ic|~/archlive/airootfs/etc/systemd/system}}. For LXDM:

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; <mnt>: Mount point.

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; <arch>: Architecture { i686 | x86_64 | any }.

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; <sfs_comp>: SquashFS compression type { gzip | lzo | xz }.

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; <fs_type>: Set the filesystem type of the image { ext4 | ext3 | ext2 | xfs }. A special value of "none" denotes no usage of a filesystem. In that case all files are pushed directly to SquashFS filesystem.

The default file should work fine, so you should not need to touch it.

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Due to the modular nature of isolinux, you are able to use lots of addons since all *.c32 files are copied and available to you. Take a look at the [http://syslinux.zytor.com/wiki/index.php/SYSLINUX official syslinux site] and the [https://projects.archlinux.org/archiso.git/tree/configs/syslinux-iso/boot-files archiso git repo]. Using said addons, it is possible to make visually attractive and complex menus. See [http://syslinux.zytor.com/wiki/index.php/Comboot/menu.c32 here].

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Alternatively you can just enable the service in {{ic|airootfs/root/customize_airootfs.sh}} along with other services that are enabled there.

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=== Login manager ===

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Starting X at boot time was done by modifying ''inittab'' on [[sysvinit]] systems. On a [[systemd]] based system things are handled by enabling your login manager's service. If you know which .service file needs a softlink: Great. If not, you can easily find out in case you're using the same program on the system you build your iso on. Just use

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If you want the graphical environment to actually start automatically during boot make sure to edit {{ic|airootfs/root/customize_airootfs.sh}} and replace

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# systemctl disable '''nameofyourloginmanager'''

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systemctl set-default multi-user.target

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with

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systemctl set-default graphical.target

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to temporarily turn it of. Next type the same command again and replace "disable" with "enable" to activate it again. Systemctl prints information about softlink it creates. Now change to ~/archiso/releng/root-image/etc/systemd/system and create the same softlink there.

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=== Changing Automatic Login ===

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An example (make sure you're either in ~/archiso/releng/root-image/etc/systemd/system or add it to the command):

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The configuration for getty's automatic login is located under {{ic|airootfs/etc/systemd/system/getty@tty1.service.d/autologin.conf}}.

Some tips that will not be covered in this article because there are other articles on this wiki that already do, but please feel free to add them here.

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*Configure the ''hosts'' file

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*Configure ''rc.conf'' (no fancy modules required here)

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*Configure ''sudoers''

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*Configure ''rc.local''

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*Put additional artworks onto the medium

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*Put arbitrary binary stuff into opt/

== Build the ISO ==

== Build the ISO ==

Now you are ready to turn your files into the .iso which you can then burn to CD or USB:

Now you are ready to turn your files into the .iso which you can then burn to CD or USB:

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Inside the directory you are working with, either ~/archlive/releng, or ~/archlive/baseline, execute:

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# ./build.sh -v build single

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First create the {{ic|out/}} directory,

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# mkdir ~/archlive/out/

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then inside {{ic|~/archlive}}, execute:

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# ./build.sh -v

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The script will now download and install the packages you specified to {{ic|work/*/airootfs}}, create the kernel and init images, apply your customizations and finally build the iso into {{ic|out/}}.

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=== Rebuild the ISO ===

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Rebuilding the iso after modifications is not officially supported. However, it is easily possible by applying two steps. First you have to remove lock files in the work directory:

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# rm -v work/build.make_*

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Furthermore it is required to edit the script {{ic|airootfs/root/customize_airootfs.sh}}, and add an {{ic|id}} command in the beginning of the {{ic|useradd}} line as shown here. Otherwise the rebuild stops at this point because the user that is to be added already exists [https://bugs.archlinux.org/task/41865].

Also remove persistent data such as created users or symlinks such as {{ic|/etc/sudoers}}.

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{{Expansion|Report more data that needs to be removed or reset.}}

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Rebuilds can be sped up slightly by editing the pacstrap script (located at /bin/pacstrap) and changing the following at line 361:

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Before:

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if ! pacman -r "$newroot" -Sy "${pacman_args[@]}"; then

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After:

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if ! pacman -r "$newroot" -Sy --needed "${pacman_args[@]}"; then

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The script will now download and install the packages you specified to work/*/root-image, create the kernel and init images, apply your customizations and finally build the iso into out/.

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This increases the speed of the initial bootstrap, since it doesn't have to download and install any of the base packages that are already installed.

== Using the ISO ==

== Using the ISO ==

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=== CD ===

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Just burn the iso to a cd. You can follow [[CD Burning]] as you wish.

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=== USB ===

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You can now dd the iso file onto a USB using dd, an example of which:

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# dd if=~/archlive/releng/out/*.iso of=/dev/sdx

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You will have to adjust accordingly, and make sure you choose the right output file! A simple mistake here will destory data on your harddisk.

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=== grub4dos ===

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Grub4dos is a utility that can be used to create multiboot usbs, able to boot multiple linux distros from the same usb stick.

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To boot the generated system on a usb with grub4dos already installed, loop mount the ISO and copy the entire {{ic|/arch}} directory to the '''root of the usb'''.

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See the [[:Category:Getting and installing Arch#Installation methods]] section for various options.

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Then edit the {{ic|menu.lst}} file from the grub4dos (it must be on the usb root) and add this lines:

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{{bc|<nowiki>

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== Tips and tricks ==

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title Archlinux x86_64

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kernel /arch/boot/x86_64/vmlinuz archisolabel=<your usb label>

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=== Installation without Internet access ===

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initrd /arch/boot/x86_64/archiso.img

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</nowiki>}}

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{{Move|Installation without Internet access|seems like this could stand alone}}

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Change the {{ic|x86_64}} part as necessary and put your '''real''' usb label there.

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If you wish to install the archiso (e.g. [https://www.archlinux.org/download/ the official monthly release]) as it is without an Internet connection, or, if you do not want to download the packages you want again:

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First, follow the [[Installation guide]], skipping the [[Installation guide#Connect to the Internet]] section, until the [[Installation guide#Install the base packages]] step.

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==== Install the archiso to the new root ====

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Instead of installing the packages with {{ic|pacstrap}} (which would try to download from the remote repositories), copy ''everything'' in the live environment to the new root:

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# time cp -ax / /mnt

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{{Note|The option ({{ic|-x}}) excludes some special directories, as they should not be copied to the new root.}}

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Then, copy the kernel image to the new root, in order to keep the integrity of the new system:

After that, generate a fstab as described in [[Installation guide#Fstab]].

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==== Chroot and configure the base system ====

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Next, chroot into your newly installed system:

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# arch-chroot /mnt /bin/bash

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{{Note|Before performing the other [[Installation guide#Configure the system]] steps (e.g. locale, keymap, etc.), it is necessary to get rid of the trace of the Live environment (in other words, the customization of archiso which does not fit a non-Live environment).}}

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===== Restore the configuration of journald =====

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[https://projects.archlinux.org/archiso.git/tree/configs/releng/airootfs/root/customize_airootfs.sh#n19 This customization of archiso] will lead to storing the system journal in RAM, it means that the journal will not be available after reboot:

There are some scripts installed in the live system by archiso scripts, which are unnecessary for the new system:

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# rm /etc/systemd/system/getty@tty1.service.d/autologin.conf

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# rm /root/{.automated_script.sh,.zlogin}

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# rm /etc/mkinitcpio-archiso.conf

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# rm -r /etc/initcpio

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===== Importing archlinux keys =====

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In order to use the official repositories, we need to import the archlinux master keys ([[pacman/Package signing#Initializing the keyring]]). This step is usually done by pacstrap but can be achieved with

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# pacman-key --init

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# pacman-key --populate archlinux

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{{Note| Keyboard or mouse activity is needed to generate entropy and speed-up the first step.}}

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===== Configure the system =====

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Now you can follow the skipped steps of the [[Installation guide#Configure the system]] section (setting a locale, timezone, hostname, etc.) and finish the installation by creating an initial ramdisk as described in [[Installation guide#Initramfs]].

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===== Enable graphical login (optional) =====

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If using a display manager like GDM, you may want to change the systemd default target from multi-user.target to one that allows graphical login.

Latest revision as of 15:20, 3 July 2017

Archiso is a small set of bash scripts capable of building fully functional Arch Linux live CD/DVD/USB images. It is the same tool used to generate the official images, but since it is a very generic tool, it can be used to generate anything from rescue systems, install disks, to special interest live CD/DVD/USB systems, and who knows what else. Simply put, if it involves Arch on a shiny coaster, it can do it. The heart and soul of Archiso is mkarchiso. All of its options are documented in its usage output, so its direct usage will not be covered here. Instead, this wiki article will act as a guide for rolling your own live media in no time!

If you wish to create a fully customized live version of Arch Linux, pre-installed with all your favorite programs and configurations, use releng.

If you just want to create the most basic live medium, with no pre-installed packages and a minimalistic configuration, use baseline.

Now, copy the profile of your choice to a directory (archlive in the example below) where you can make adjustments and build it. Execute the following, replacing profile with either releng or baseline.

If you are using the baseline profile to create a bare image, then you will not be needing to do any customization and can proceed onto #Build the ISO.

Configure the live medium

This section details configuring the image you will be creating, allowing you to define the packages and configurations you want your live image to contain.

Inside the archlive directory created in #Setup there are a number of files and directories; we are only concerned with a few of these, mainly:

packages.* - this is where you list, line by line, the packages you want to have installed, and

the airootfs directory - this directory acts as an overlay and it is where you make all the customizations.

Generally, every administrative task that you would normally do after a fresh install except for package installation can be scripted into archlive/airootfs/root/customize_airootfs.sh. It has to be written from the perspective of the new environment, so / in the script means the root of the live-iso which is to be created.

Installing packages

Edit the lists of packages in packages.i686, packages.x86_64, or packages.both to indicate which packages are to be installed on the live medium. The suffix here indicates which architecture the packages are available.

Note: If you want to use a window manager in the Live CD then you must add the necessary and correct video drivers, or the WM may freeze on loading.

Custom local repository

Notes: Move the general information (e.g. repo tree) into the main article. (Discuss in Talk:Archiso#)

This article or section is out of date.

Reason: References to i686 need to be removed due to its phasing out. (Discuss in Talk:Archiso#)

You can also create a custom local repository for the purpose of preparing custom packages or packages from AUR/ABS. When doing so with packages for both architectures, you should follow a certain directory order to not run into problems.

For instance:

~/customrepo

~/customrepo/x86_64

~/customrepo/x86_64/foo-x86_64.pkg.tar.xz

~/customrepo/x86_64/customrepo.db.tar.gz

~/customrepo/x86_64/customrepo.db (symlink created by repo-add)

~/customrepo/i686

~/customrepo/i686/foo-i686.pkg.tar.xz

~/customrepo/i686/customrepo.db.tar.gz

~/customrepo/i686/customrepo.db (symlink created by repo-add)

You can then add your repository by putting the following into ~/archlive/pacman.conf, above the other repository entries (for top priority):

If this is not the case you will be running into error messages similar to this:

error: failed to prepare transaction (package architecture is not valid)
:: package foo-i686 does not have a valid architecture

Preventing installation of packages belonging to base group

By default, /usr/bin/mkarchiso, a script which is used by ~/archlive/build.sh, calls one of the arch-install-scripts named pacstrap without the -i flag, which causes Pacman to not wait for user input during the installation process.

When blacklisting base group packages by adding them to the IgnorePkg line in ~/archlive/pacman.conf, Pacman asks if they still should be installed, which means they will when user input is bypassed. To get rid of these packages there are several options:

Dirty: Add the -i flag to each line calling pacstrap in /usr/bin/mkarchiso.

Clean: Create a copy of /usr/bin/mkarchiso in which you add the flag and adapt ~/archlive/build.sh so that it calls the modified version of the mkarchiso script.

Advanced: Create a function for ~/archlive/build.sh which explicitly removes the packages after the base installation. This would leave you the comfort of not having to type enter so much during the installation process.

Installing packages from multilib

To install packages from the multilib repository you have to create two pacman configuration files: one for x86_64 and one for i686. Copy pacman.conf to pacmanx86_64.conf and pacmani686.conf. Uncomment the following lines to enable multilib in pacmanx86_64.conf:

In this way packages for x86_64 and i686 will be installed with their own pacman configuration file.

Adding files to image

Note: You must be root to do this, do not change the ownership of any of the files you copy over, everything within the airootfs directory must be root owned. Proper ownerships will be sorted out shortly.

The airootfs directory acts as an overlay, think of it as root directory '/' on your current system, so any files you place within this directory will be copied over on boot-up.

So if you have a set of iptables scripts on your current system you want to be used on you live image, copy them over as such:

# cp -r /etc/iptables ~/archlive/airootfs/etc

Placing files in the users home directory is a little different. Do not place them within airootfs/home, but instead create a skel directory within airootfs/ and place them there. We will then add the relevant commands to the customize_airootfs.sh which we are going to use to copy them over on boot and sort out the permissions.

First, create the skel directory:

# mkdir ~/archlive/airootfs/etc/skel

Now copy the 'home' files to the skel directory, e.g for .bashrc:

# cp ~/.bashrc ~/archlive/airootfs/etc/skel/

When ~/archlive/airootfs/root/customize_airootfs.sh is executed and a new user is created, the files from the skel directory will automatically be copied over to the new home folder, permissions set right.

Similarly, some care is required for special configuration files that reside somewhere down the hierarchy. As an example the /etc/X11/xinit/xinitrc configuration file resides on a path that might be overwritten by installing a package. To place the configuration file one should put the custom xinitrc in ~/archlive/airootfs/etc/skel/ and then modify customize_airootfs.sh to move it appropriately.

Boot Loader

The default file should work fine, so you should not need to touch it.

Due to the modular nature of isolinux, you are able to use lots of addons since all *.c32 files are copied and available to you. Take a look at the official syslinux site and the archiso git repo. Using said addons, it is possible to make visually attractive and complex menus. See here.

Login manager

Starting X at boot is done by enabling your login manager's systemd service. If you know which .service file needs a softlink: Great. If not, you can easily find out in case you are using the same program on the system you build your iso on. Just use:

$ ls -l /etc/systemd/system/display-manager.service

Now create the same softlink in ~/archlive/airootfs/etc/systemd/system. For LXDM:

Build the ISO

Now you are ready to turn your files into the .iso which you can then burn to CD or USB:

First create the out/ directory,

# mkdir ~/archlive/out/

then inside ~/archlive, execute:

# ./build.sh -v

The script will now download and install the packages you specified to work/*/airootfs, create the kernel and init images, apply your customizations and finally build the iso into out/.

Rebuild the ISO

Rebuilding the iso after modifications is not officially supported. However, it is easily possible by applying two steps. First you have to remove lock files in the work directory:

# rm -v work/build.make_*

Furthermore it is required to edit the script airootfs/root/customize_airootfs.sh, and add an id command in the beginning of the useradd line as shown here. Otherwise the rebuild stops at this point because the user that is to be added already exists [2].

Chroot and configure the base system

Next, chroot into your newly installed system:

# arch-chroot /mnt /bin/bash

Note: Before performing the other Installation guide#Configure the system steps (e.g. locale, keymap, etc.), it is necessary to get rid of the trace of the Live environment (in other words, the customization of archiso which does not fit a non-Live environment).